Where to plug in pump

[ComputerNewb]

I’m building a pc for the first time and I am getting a cooler master ml240l v2 aio. I’ve been reading online and I was wondering where I should plug it in. I have system fan slots open aswell as the cpu fan slot open. I am using the z390 aorus pro gaming. Would appreciate some help thanks

[For Science!]

1 hour ago, ComputerNewb said:

 

Welcome to the forums!

 

The short answer is: it doesn't matter as long as you configure the fan curve associated with the header correctly.

 

Long answer: Pumps on these AIOs are powered through DC voltage, normally rated to 12 V. Pumps, unlike fans, normally does not improve the temperature (ability for the AIO to dissipate heat) with it's speed. As long as there is a minimal flow in the system there is no need to change the pump speed as that would introduce additional "perceived noise" since the noise level will change with CPU load for example, and that will be more noticeable than a constant hum that doesn't change as long as the computer is on.

 

So whichever header you use, it is my recommendation for you to flatten the fan curve (i.e. a fixed RPM at any temperature) so that the pump is at a constant speed. Start this at "100% fan speed" so that you are giving the pump it's rated 12V, if you are happy with the noise level, leave it there. If you absolutely cannot stand it, Lower the "fan speed" 10% at a time and find a level that you are happy with. Unfortunately there is no real way to check if there "is enough waterflow" so try to stick close to 100% as much as possible, since AIO pumps are not very powerful. This should be done in "DC mode" for the fan header as PWM would be a constant 12 V.

 

Most motherboard headers are powerful enough for all AIO waterpumps, and so it doesn't matter if you use a CPU_FAN header, AIO_PUMP header, or SYS_FAN header (exact terms may differ per vendor). The only real consideration here is that most motherboard will throw a CPU FAN ERROR! style of warning if it doesn't detect something on the CPU_FAN header. Since a dead AIO pump will be really bad news for temperatures, it is useful to be able to detect that no RPM signal is coming from the AIO pump in the case of a failure. Therefore I would recommend using CPU_FAN header for AIO pumps since the BIOS is sensitive to it's funcitionality. While other headers will work fine, they will not have this additional safety feature and if the pump died, you would have to detect it yourself. 

[ComputerNewb]

6 hours ago, For Science! said:

Welcome to the forums!

 

The short answer is: it doesn't matter as long as you configure the fan curve associated with the header correctly.

 

Long answer: Pumps on these AIOs are powered through DC voltage, normally rated to 12 V. Pumps, unlike fans, normally does not improve the temperature (ability for the AIO to dissipate heat) with it's speed. As long as there is a minimal flow in the system there is no need to change the pump speed as that would introduce additional "perceived noise" since the noise level will change with CPU load for example, and that will be more noticeable than a constant hum that doesn't change as long as the computer is on.

 

So whichever header you use, it is my recommendation for you to flatten the fan curve (i.e. a fixed RPM at any temperature) so that the pump is at a constant speed. Start this at "100% fan speed" so that you are giving the pump it's rated 12V, if you are happy with the noise level, leave it there. If you absolutely cannot stand it, Lower the "fan speed" 10% at a time and find a level that you are happy with. Unfortunately there is no real way to check if there "is enough waterflow" so try to stick close to 100% as much as possible, since AIO pumps are not very powerful. This should be done in "DC mode" for the fan header as PWM would be a constant 12 V.

 

Most motherboard headers are powerful enough for all AIO waterpumps, and so it doesn't matter if you use a CPU_FAN header, AIO_PUMP header, or SYS_FAN header (exact terms may differ per vendor). The only real consideration here is that most motherboard will throw a CPU FAN ERROR! style of warning if it doesn't detect something on the CPU_FAN header. Since a dead AIO pump will be really bad news for temperatures, it is useful to be able to detect that no RPM signal is coming from the AIO pump in the case of a failure. Therefore I would recommend using CPU_FAN header for AIO pumps since the BIOS is sensitive to it's funcitionality. While other headers will work fine, they will not have this additional safety feature and if the pump died, you would have to detect it yourself. 

Thanks one last question I assume I change fan curve in the bios

[For Science!]

1 minute ago, ComputerNewb said:

Thanks one last question I assume I change fan curve in the bios

yep

[ComputerNewb]

Thank you very much